I noticed that you posted several images that not only have nothing to do with your posts, but that they are in fact related to your own projects. We have a dedicated space where you can promote your own work, and you can find this at The Shameless Promotion Room. I've removed these images from your posts.

Spenworks wrote:Don't forget Beto! personally Beto Hernendez's work really resonated with me. he took the style of the Archie Comics artist and put in into the stratosphere! Some of the best work about provincial Mexican life ever commited to page in any medium.

IMHO.

oh yeah, i love Beto too, but i LOVE Jaimez work. The Death of Speedy arc, and the stories about the Jerusalem Crickets on tour are some of my favorites comix stories EVER. how LnR hasn't been picked up by an indie studio for a live action film i'll never figure out. it would be HUGE.

DennisMM wrote:A few lines about why you like a particular artist would be great, but if you prefer a list, so be it.

My bad. I really don't know what it is I like about Bagley. There was just something about the way he drawed Spider-Man that sort of got me hooked on his style. Maybe because it's sort of cartoony, but also sort of not, which makes it more accessible? I don't know. I think his work has gotten sloppier since joining USM, but that he's gotten better at creating story and mood with his choices.

I really enjoyed Bagley's work on Thunderbolts. His art nicely balances cartoon styles and realism, as you wrote. He's open and fresh and his art is fun to look at, which isn't always a plus for other artists.

MasterWhedon wrote:Check out Roger Cruz's gallery on his website HERE. Of the modern guys working, he's one of my absolute favorites.

HAHAHA DISOWNED!

You disapprove. That's cool, but Cruz is still my guy.

I first fell in love with the guy's stuff on his Age of Apocalypse and X-Man run a few years back. It was around the same time Joe Mad was drawing Uncanny and Jeff Matsuda was drawing X-Factor. They each had such a great left-of-center, slightly-manga style coupled with near-flawless layouts and and a really great feel for character and emotion.

Roger Cruz was my personal favorite of the three. Here are a few examples of his work:

Cruz is a guy who I'll admit has gotten a lot better both as a technical artist and a storyteller, but I find that he hasn't evolved much in terms of style and atmosphere. He started out swiping quite a bit from Joe Mad, and I commend him for growing above that. But when I see his stuff I still don't find anything interesting or exciting about it. His range of body-types and facial expressions is still very limited.

I can understand while you and others would findhis work appealing, as you said it has a nice dash of manga influence and the characters are all portrayed very 'supermodel'-like. It still works and is vital in the superhero genre.

Ribbons wrote:My bad. I really don't know what it is I like about Bagley. There was just something about the way he drawed Spider-Man that sort of got me hooked on his style. Maybe because it's sort of cartoony, but also sort of not, which makes it more accessible? I don't know. I think his work has gotten sloppier since joining USM, but that he's gotten better at creating story and mood with his choices.

I think his storytelling skills have gotten a lot better because he's had to pump out two, two and a half books a month. He's having to rely more on mood and emotion of the characters to tell the story and less on eye-candy. If he slowed down a bit more I'm sure he'd be at the top of his game.

In my opinion, he is the most technically adept artist I've ever seen work in comics. Dave McKean is a close second, but Sienkiewicz blows away the rest.

Years before other mainstream comics artists were using collage, he was gluing clock works and circuit boards onto pages. He made Warlock seem plausible in New Mutants, something even Arthur Adams couldn't quite manage.

In Elektra Assassin he brought together just about everything he had worked with previously -- line art, mixed-media painting, collage, photography, fibers -- and went completely nuts with it.

The book dr3w harsh criticism and over-the-top applause (from me, at the time), but it told the story Frank Miller wrote, in the full-script style Sienkiewicz received, and broke new ground.

Thought I'd bump this with some love for a couple guys I didn't see. Gene Ha's work with Moore on Top Ten and Forty Niners immediately launched him into my favorites, just really detail oriented, energetic, vibrant stuff, I just love how big he managed to make that world. Have picked up anything else by the guy though (though the preview stuff of his earlier work like Batman: Fortunate Son left me a bit underwhelmed), be interesting to see how he fares from here on out on projects without Moore.

And Gabriele Dell'Otto! I love this guy's stuff! He's another painter jumping into the comics world, which I know a lot of people can give or take in the panelled world of comics, but I find it completely stunning. Bendis didn't do much for me with Secret Wars, but I loved Dell'Otto's work throughout most of this, and the stuff I've seen of Batman: Europa looks equally jaw dropping and I cannot wait to see it.

Did I miss Europa by the way? I can't say I keep the closest watch on comics so its very possible it came out already while I was blinking, but I remember reading about it forever ago and haven't seen or heard much since.

I just want to give a shout-out to one of the greatest comic book artists of all time. Your work on Longshot was way ahead of it's time back in '85. You blessed the FF with your awesome rendition of Joe Fixit, which you actually Grande Rojo's favorite person for me on a comic board back when I was 11 (1991), which I have since lost . Your influence on J. Scott Campbell is very evident. God bless you, and please make a return trip to FL so I can get another sketch.

Thank you Jim Lee, for reviving every comic book you put your mark on. Fo that, I can even forgive most of your original work, although, in my opinion, Deathblow was a good book. Thanks for Omega Red. Basically, thanks for taking comic book art to the next level, and for inspiring wannabes.

Thank you Joe Mad for bringing your anime/graffiti style to comic books. Like Jim Lee, you have spawned many copycats, but you are the pioneer. Although I've heard you're a lazy-ass when it comes to deadlines, the wait is worth it. I hope the rumors that you're taking over a Spidey book are true. The original Astonishing X-Men is one of my favorite limited series of all time, and Deadpool was great too.

Neal Adams was hot when Byrne was drawing clunky robots in the back of E-Man, and while Byrne is one of the better artists of the past 30 years, he did not innovate at all in the way Neal Adams did. Arthur Adams I recognize for the "lots of lines" movement that continued through the '80s and '90s. Fantastic artist, but I wouldn't credit him with any breakthroughs. IMO.

St. wrote:Art is still drawing. He Grande Rojo's favorite person(WTF?) a Composite Supergirl sketch for charity or something just a couple of months ago. He was also drawing Johnni Future in Tom Strong's Terrific Tales while that was running. One of the big two really should get him on an ongoing. They employ Pat Lee and Rob Liefeld but not Art Adams?!?!

At this point in his career, Art Adams can do whatever he wants. I don't think it's that nobody's hiring him, because he still does art for every company there is, even in 2006.

By the way, before anybody gets all worked up; I'm joking, Neal Adams is a treasure to comicdom. He was part of the advancement of realism in comic book art, and I commend him for that. John Byrne is not really on his level. I just wanted to say that to get shit riled up, but I couldn't hold in the truth much longer.